Key to the Mint

Key to the Mint
Key to the Mint
Sire	Graustark
Grandsire	Ribot
Dam	Key Bridge
Damsire	Princequillo
Sex	Stallion
Foaled	1969
Country	United States
Colour	Bay
Breeder	Paul Mellon
Owner	Rokeby Stables
Trainer	J. Elliott Burch
Record	29: 14-4-3
Earnings	$576,015
Major wins
	Remsen Stakes (1971); Withers Stakes (1972); Woodward Stakes (1972); Derby Trial Stakes (1972); Brooklyn Handicap (1972); Whitney Stakes (1972); Travers Stakes (1972); Suburban Handicap (1973); Excelsior Handicap (1973)
Awards
	American Champion 3-Year-Old Colt (1972)

Key to the Mint (1969–1996) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse.

Background

Bred by Paul Mellon and raced under his Rokeby Stable colors, Key to the Mint was trained by future Hall of Fame inductee Elliott Burch.

Key to the Mint did not run in the Kentucky Derby, the first race of the U.S. Triple Crown series, then finished third to winner Bee Bee Bee in the Preakness Stakes and fourth to Riva Ridge in the Belmont Stakes.

Following the Triple Crown races, Key to the Mint dominated his age group in 1972 and was voted the Eclipse Award for American Champion Three-Year-Old Male Horse. He continued to race at age four, notably winning the 1973 Excelsior Handicap and won on a sloppy track for 10 furlongs in winning the Suburban Handicap.

Retired to stud duty, Key to the Mint sired Plugged Nickle, the 1980 American Champion Sprint Horse; Java Gold, a multiple Grade 1 winner and sire of Kona Gold; and Jewel Princess, the 1996 American Champion Older Female Horse. He is also the damsire of European Champion Swain and Canadian Champion 3-Year-Old Male Horse Key to the Moon. Key to the Mint was euthanized due to infirmities of old age on September 21, 1996.